I've been noticing Bellinter flagged on loads of blogs recently, including on Homebug, my fave daily design/interiors read. So I thought I'd share with you guys the time myself and himself took ourselves off to Nearly Navan for a night.
On a cold and dreary January evening, we drove up the N3, peering frantically for the road to the house. Hard to find at night, it's well worth the search. A mini-Castletown, the house was restored sympathetically, but with lots of very relaxed contemporary touches, making it a very chilled place to spend a day or two. Plus, it's got a bijoux spa, which was the reason for our visit.
After checking into our fabulous room - colossal, replete with enormous sash windows and bigger bed, the attached bathroom was roomier than our entire flat - we explored. A tv glided up, Cribs-style, from a purpose-built cabinet and provided us with lots of entertainment options, including tons of music choices - as expected, really, as Bellinter is co-owned by one of the 'Leccy Piccy guys.
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I left himself happily switching between Tindersticks and Out Hud, and went off to The Bathhouse, which uses products by Voya and Uspa, for my treatment. I'd never had a seaweed bath before, and was heartily looking forward to it. I began by sitting in a steam chamber for a few minutes - a little like wearing a wooden jacket - to open pores, and then the main action began. The seaweed had been soaking for hours to release all its magical sea-y amazingness, and the water was on the comfortable side of hot. Togs on, I eased myself in around the fronds, and lay back. Bliss.
I lay there for about 40 minutes - any more can be very dehydrating - and allowed the treatment to do its work. And there's a lot more to this than mere relaxation. Seaweed therapies are detoxifying and moisturising, and are a great way to kick start a diet or new regime. My skin felt so soft immediately afterwards, and stayed that way for days.
In short, a total score. And at €60, not the most expensive of therapies either. You can also try Voya seaweed bathing at the Voya Spa in Strandhill, Co. Sligo, or buy some of the products online. If you're going that route, then what better splurge than the Lazy Days kit? €16 gets you an at-home bath treat, so you can recreate the experience of wallowing in seaweed in your own home!
